Baltimore Power Rankings 12/25
Merry Christmas! The work never stops for us here at Prep Hoops, and while teams in the area enjoy a short holiday break, the action from the past week has impacted the Baltimore power rankings significantly. Let’s dive right…
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Continue ReadingMerry Christmas! The work never stops for us here at Prep Hoops, and while teams in the area enjoy a short holiday break, the action from the past week has impacted the Baltimore power rankings significantly.
Let’s dive right in.
Mt. St. Joe (10-1)
Last week’s Ranking: No. 3
Last week’s games: win @ St. Frances (74-63)
Next three games: vs Walsingham @ Benedictine Capital Classic (12/27), TBA @ Benedictine Capital Classic (12/28), TBA @ Benedictine Capital Classic (12/29)
The Gaels take over as the top team in the area after going into a hostile environment at St. Frances and coming out with a convincing win. LSU commit James Bishop proved why he is the top player in Baltimore with a 29-point performance, 11 of which came in the final eight minutes. 2020 Tyler Brelsford and 2021 Ausar Crawley finished with 15 points and 14 points respectively.
2. Poly (5-2)
Last week’s ranking: No. 2
Last week’s games: win vs St. Maria Goretti (68-61)
Next three games: vs Granby @ DeMatha Holiday Tournament (12/27), TBA @ DeMatha Holiday Tournament (12/28), TBA @ DeMatha Holiday Tournament (12/29)
The Engineers had another marquee victory this past week over St. Maria Goretti. 2020 Justin Lewis led the way with 23 points while freshman sharpshooter Bryce Lindsay nailed five three’s to tally 15 points. 2020 Brandon Murray made his return and chipped in with 13 points. Now that Murray is back, Poly will be full force going into the bulk of the schedule which should result in a lot of wins.
3. St. Frances (12-2)
Last week’s ranking: No. 1
Last week’s games: win vs Glenelg Country (54-45), loss vs Mt. St. Joe (74-63)
Next three games: vs Memphis East @ Chick-Fil-A Classic (12/27), TBA @ Chick-Fil-A Classic (12/28), TBA @ Chick-Fil-A Classic (12/29)
The Panthers drop two spots, but still remain among the juggernauts of the area. Last week was a hiccup at a not so good time. They struggled to finish Glenelg Country and suffered their second loss of the season in a game against rival Mt. St. Joe. A pair of 2020’s in Ace Baldwin and Jamal West combined for 40 of the 63 points against the Gaels. Baldwin had 26 and West had 14. The schedule ahead isn’t any easier as they take on arguably the best big man in the country, James Wiseman, and a great Memphis East team.
4. Boys’ Latin (13-2)
Last week’s ranking: No. 5
Last week’s games: win vs Cristo Rey (65-42), win vs Carver Vo-Tech (72-24), win vs West Nottingham (75-68)
Next three games: vs Archbishop Carroll @ Crossover Hoops Showcase (12/26), vs Abraham Lincoln (PA) @ Governor’s Challenge (12/28), vs Maret @ Governor’s Challenge (12/29)
The Lakers rip off another perfect week and as a result, move up in the rankings. They continue to break down obstacles in their schedule. This past week, it was a huge win against West Nottingham Academy. Once again, they took down a team that outmatched them in size at pretty much every position. The senior trio of Cam Spencer, Cam Watts and Sam Grace continue to pummel opponents from beyond the arc.
5. Patterson (5-1)
Last week’s ranking: No. 4
Last week’s games: win vs City (62-48), loss vs Bonner (PA) (75-71) 2OT
Next three games: vs Oakdale @ Governor’s Challenge (12/27), TBA @ Governor’s Challenge (12/28), TBA @ Governor’s Challenge (12/29)
Patterson suffered their first loss of the season, but still remain in the conversation as a top contender in the city. In a convincing win over City, 2019 Marvin Price had another 20+ point performance finishing with 23 points and nine rebounds. Two senior guards in Jalen Willis and Millersville commit Gerard Mungo both had double-doubles. In the double OT thriller against Bonner, who is one of the top teams in Philadelphia, Price finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds. In the end, Miami commit Isaiah Wong’s 40-point outing was too much for the Clippers.
6. Annapolis Area Christian (8-1)
Last week’s ranking: No. 6
Last week’s games: win @ McDonogh (53-43)
Next three games: TBA @ Severna Park Holiday Tournament (12/27), TBA @ Severna Park Holiday Tournament (12/28), TBA @ Governor’s Challenge (12/29)
The Eagles won their seventh-straight game in a battle at McDonogh. Senior guard Eddie Scott showed up in a big way with 20 points in the win. They have a plethora of different options that can fill it up in the scoring column based on their match up. It’ll be interesting to see if they can win the Severna Park Holiday Tournament and their game down at the Governor’s Challenge the upcoming week.
7. Dulaney (4-0)
Last week’s ranking: No. 7
Last week’s games: win @ Towson (90-56), win @ Franklin (87-53)
Next three games: vs St. George @ Governor’s Challenge (12/27), vs Neumann Goretti @ Governor’s Challenge (12/28), @ Sparrows Point (1/4)
Dulaney collected two wins over the past week in dominant fashion once again. Like I’ve said in each rankings piece thus far, I like this Dulaney team, but I want to see them play a strong opponent before moving them up with the juggernauts. 2020 Che Evans had 33 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Towson.
8. New Town (3-0)
Last week’s ranking: No. 9
Last week’s games: win @ Western Tech (92-41)
Next three games: vs Whitman @ Governor’s Challenge (12/28), TBA @ Governor’s Challenge (12/29), vs Carver A&T (1/4)
The Titans stayed perfect with a lopsided win over Western Tech. They were heavy favorites before going into the game, but with certain teams losing and moving down in the rankings, it’s only right that they move up one slot for this week. Their games at the Governor’s Challenge will tell us a lot about this team. They can go 7-to-8 guys deep who can produce at a solid rate.
9. McDonogh (7-3)
Last week’s ranking: No. 8
Last week’s games: win @ Spalding (66-51), loss vs Annapolis Area (53-43)
Next three games: TBA @ St. Andrew’s Invitational (12/27), TBA @ St. Andrew’s Invitational (12/28), vs Glenelg Country (1/4)
McDonogh has been battling the injury bug for the past week. With senior guard Drew Green out for possibly a month after dislocating his shoulder and sophomore wing Jared Billups recovering from a concussion, other players have been forced to take on a bigger role. Those players have been sophomore guard Dave Brown and junior forward Curtis Jacobs. The duo finished with 19 and 20 points respectively in their win over Spalding. As for the future, they needs Jacobs and Green back in a big way. Until then, they’ll depend on Jacobs, Brown and company to keep them above water.
10. Loyola (8-6)
Last week’s ranking: Unranked
Last week’s games: win vs Pallotti (68-61), win vs Calvert Hall (53-33)
Next three games: @ Mt. Carmel (1/4), @ Boys’ Latin (1/7), vs Archbishop Spalding (1/9)
The Dons fell out of the top 10 last week, but with their win over Pallotti, they’re back into the conversation. They got off to a slow start by scoring just 13 points in the first half against Calvert Hall, but exploded in the second half to spark a runaway victory. They held East Carolina commit Logan Curtis to just five points. Senior Brendan Fox was a consistent scoring presence throughout the week for Loyola.
Honorable Mention: Dundalk (4-1), Parkville (4-1), Glenelg Country (7-4), Lake Clifton (5-1)